Kitchens are one of the busiest rooms in the home and as such, can also become the most cluttered and chaotic. I’ve been trying out things to help keep it clean and simple, so here I share with you my 5 tips to keep a simple kitchen.

1. Clear the fridge. By removing almost everything from the surface of the fridge, it makes a much cleaner kitchen, both in the look of it and the actual surface. Eliminating cards, pictures, and calendars from the fridge can by done by hanging them somewhere else. For me, I chose to look inside the cupboards and that is where I place anything I need quick visual access to. You’re likely opening many cupboards frequently enough that it can also be a great place to put artwork or anything else that makes you smile.

Just because I try to keep a simple home doesn’t mean I am immune to clutter. Organizing isn’t a one-time deal, it requires daily maintenance and sometimes a mini do-over if you haven’t been keeping it tidy. Watch as I remove, clean, and rearrange everything in my “catch-all” cupboard in the kitchen.

First step is to pick where you want to organize/simplify. Next step is to remove everything, yes, even if it means jumping up and down to see the back of the cupboard like I had to. Then it’s time to wipe down the shelves. Then I went through the items and decided if there was anything that needed to be moved to another location or thrown out. I didn’t have much to remove because I had already done a purge of the cupboard once.

After that comes what I call the “fun”. Finding a place to put things back. Since the last system obviously wasn’t working for me (otherwise I would have maintained it better) I decided to try to put things back differently the second time. I put things I rarely use (once a week or less) on the top shelf, things that are used but not necessarily daily on the middle shelf, and my daily-use or things I need quick access to on the first shelf. I Hope you enjoy watching this and let me know which space tends to become cluttered for you.